Some Big NYC Anniversaries in 2011

I often take note here on Hi-Fi Bri of famous anniversaries here in NYC.  In fact, one of the most widely viewed and linked posts was last year's story about the 100th anniversary of the Manhattan Bridge.  Well, as I found out today on the Bowery Boys blog, 2011 is shaping up as a banner year for centennial celebrations here in the city.

The biggest birthday is 100 years for the New York Public Library's landmark building on Fifth Avenue and 42nd Street.  In preparation for the centennial celebration, this landmark has been getting a facelift and, while in midtown yesterday, I noticed the scaffolding had come off the south side of the building on 40th and it looks incredible!  The marble facade is now blindingly white after decades of NYC grime were removed with soap and water.

A more grim anniversary coming up in March is that of the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire of 1911.  More than 146 people died in this infamous tragedy, with many young immigrant women leaping to their deaths from a locked sweatshop.  And, of course, another sad anniversary will be the the marking of a decade since the September 11th attack on the World Trade Center.  To read more about all the upcoming anniversaries, you can check out the Bowery Boys blog which has a full listing and more information as well.

Jeff Bridges Has A Really Cool Website

Jeff Bridges has been on the talk show circuit lately for not one but two movies that are out this holiday season;  TRUE GRIT and TRON LEGACY  Though actually TRON is more like a big video game than a movie.  Granted a very cool looking and sounding video game in which he plays two characters, including a 30 years younger version of himself from the original TRON.

Anyway, I saw him on Jimmy Kimmel last week ostensibly pitching TRON. But they mainly talked about other stuff, like THE BIG LEBOWSKI and the cult of The Dude.  Jimmy also mentioned that he had visisted Jeff Bridges website and was very impressed by it.  I checked it out and have to agree.....it's pretty unique.  Bridges is an artist and photographer and the website utilitzes his quirky handwriting and original drawings to show off his artistic side.  Its really worth a visit...and, unlike TRON, it is free.  Though his photobook of Wideluxe movie set stills and other works of art are available for purchase.

Need A New Years' Resolution? Stop Drinking Bottled Water

New Years is a time for resolutions that are generally aimed at self-improvement; lose weight, quit smoking, get a girlfriend/boyfriend/, lose a girlfriend/boyfriend.  OK--these are all well and good but, let's face it...4 out of 5 times these resolutions just don't work.  I think I have tried all of them (except for me lose weight was gain weight) and most have been a failure.  Except for that one time I resolved to start flossing...

Anyway, how about resolving to do something to improve the world in 2011.  It's very simple as you don't have to cure world hunger or end war or anything like all.  All you have to do is stop drinking bottled water.  Seriously.  It is one of the most wasteful habits of mankind.  Here's a few simple and scary facts:

• 1.5 million barrels of oil a year are used to make the bottles 
• That's enough oil for 100,000 cars in the US to drive around for one full year
• Every week nearly 40,000 18-wheelers are tooling around the US to deliver bottled water
• More than 80% of bottled water containers in the US are not recycled
• It can take 7 times the amount of water in the bottle to actually make the bottle!!!

So, despite the green label (yes Poland Spring--I'm talking to YOU), bottled water is incredibly wasteful. But it's also totally unnecessary too. Tap water is held to much higher standards than bottled water. So get yourself a nice stainless steel thermos, fill it up in the sink and resolve to do your part to make the world a better place.  And forget those boyfriend/girlfriend resolutions.  Just remember...a good planet is even harder to find.

Chicago Nanny Could Be The Next Walker Evans

This was a fascinating story that a friend forwarded to me about a Chicago nanny who took thousands of photographs on her day off and just may be one of the best street photographers of the 20th century.  Vivan Maier took care of children and was something of a modern day Mary Poppins but on her days off, she roamed the streets of the second city snapping some extraordinary B/W photos of mid-century life.

This story is really even more remarkable due to the fact that all of her work might never had been seen except for the accidental efforts of a young real estate agent who is now her biggest champion.  Watch this story from WTTW (Chicago's PBS affiliate) and discover the work of the woman who just may be the next Walker Evans.

JCM's Mattachine Party Goes Mainstream

There was a nice little write-up of one of downtown's semi-best kept secrets in the Times yesterday; John Cameron' Mitchell's MATTACHINE party at Julius.  For more than 40 years, Julius has been a mainstay of the West Village scene.  It was in fact the scene of one of the first gay rights protests when patrons there a few years before the Stonewall Riots demanded to be served when it was illegal to serve "homosexuals".

Anyway, JCM has spurred a revival of the joint with his monthly Thursday night party which attracts a very mixed crowd of artsy downtown types of all ages.  The wonderful thing about this party which didn't get mentioned is how it's a place where people actually have conversations, unlike most night spots where the music is too blaring to be heard.  Also, I've found that people at this party are very open and friendly, as opposed to the uptightness and stares often encountered at many NYC gay bars/nightclubs.

A friend of mine and Mattachine regular Tim Murphy, a New York magazine writer, put this piece together and it's a really lovely portrait of an unusual night out on the town and one that has been the saving grace of nightlife for me.  Like John, who's been in the 'hood 18 years, I too am an artistic survivor, living in the now-super fancy wilds of the West Village.  I've been in my apartment for just as long and, at a Christmas party this year and, as I told someone where I lived, they said "wow--you must be rich."  No...just lucky.  And older than I may seem :)

Sneak Peek at HALF-SHARE, A New Web Series

Back in October, I spent a lovely week out on Fire Island co-producing a new web series called HALF-SHARE. Written and directed by indie film hypenates Jesse Archer and Sean Hanley, this new comedy is about a lively house of gays in Fire Island Pines who welcome a newcomer for his first summer to the "Island of Lost Boys".  The script is a riot and I had a great time working on the show. The hilarious cast includes comic and UGLY BETTY alum Alec Mapa, Sam Pancake (currently featured on SHIT MY DAD SAYS) and Jack Plotnick (from GIRLS WILL BE GIRLS) along with adorable newcomer Kyle Spidle who plays the Pines newbie.

Jesse and Sean are currently just about finished editing and will be posting the show soon for a premiere in the New Year.  I will post updates and links when the show goes live so you can check it out.  In the meantime, Jesse recently posted a bunch of pictures from the production and there are more behind the scenes shots on the HALF-SHARE website too.  You can find me in a couple of the pics on set, lurking in the background and trying to keep everything on schedule.  Anyway, I look forward to sharing this fun new show with you in 2011....stay tuned!

The Blizzard of 2010 In 38 Seconds

New York was hit by a massive blizzard the day after Christmas with nearly two feet blanketing the city in less than 24 hours.  Unfortunately, or maybe fortunately, I missed all the excitement as I've been down in Maryland where we got barely a dusting from the storm.  But I've been reading all about it on the web.

There have been some great photos in the TIMES of the storm and it's aftereffects, the one above taken on a Sackett Street in Park Slope.  And there was a great time lapse video of the storm posted to Vimeo yesterday which, so far has gotten more than a million hits.  It's a fun and funny look at the blizzard, as the videomaker keeps trying to keep his clock above the rapidly accumulating snow.


December 2010 Blizzard Timelapse from Michael Black on Vimeo.

A Few Of My Favorite Christmas Things

I've been working on my iMovie skills lately so I put together a little video of a few of my favorite Christmas things.  It's a compilation of some of the pics I've taken over the past few holidays with my family.  Hope you enjoy it and have a great Christmas weekend! :)


A Few Of My Favorite Christmas Things from Brian Sloan on Vimeo.

Franklin Kameny, Age 85, Witnesses History

Yesterday, President Obama made good on his promise to repeal the ban on gays and lesbians serving in the US military.  It was not easy and the President deserves a great deal of credit for his persistence and tenacity in making this hateful policy history.  It was a landmark day for civil rights in this country.  And on hand to witness it, along with hundreds of servicemembers and activists was an 85 year old man that not many people took note of....Franklin Kameny.

If you don't know his name, you should as Kameny is one of the true founding fathers of the gay rights movement.  After being dishonorably discharged from the Army for being gay in the 1950s, he fought and argued his case all the way to the Supreme Court making his the first civil rights claim based on sexual orientation.  After losing, Kameny didn't give up. He staged some of the first protests and pickets for gay rights way back in the early 1960s.  Wearing his trademark white shirt and tie, Kameny's daring attempts to bring the discrimination against gays and lesbians to the nation's attention was bold given the times he was living in, when homosexuality was a crime in many states and homosexuals considered mentally deficient deviants.

There were surprisingly few mentions of Kameny's presence in national articles today about the signing ceremony.  But only one, Washington's nightlife mag MetroWeekly, actually got a quote from him and it was a good one: "I didn't think I'd live to see it." Frankly, I doubted it myself at times this year.  But finally "it's done," as Obama said slapping the table as he put down his presidential pen.  And now that we can fight and die equally for our country, you can bet the chorus of voices who will want to live and love equally will continue to grow.  How wonderful would it be for Franklin Kameny to see marriage equality in his lifetime?

Cute Guys Shoot Some Amazing Trick Shots

I was tooling around on one of my favorite local blogs, Bowery Boogie, when I came across the video of a trio of guys shooting some amazing trick shots on the basketball courts of Manhattan.  They made the video a couple years ago, soon after settling in on the Lower East Side all the way from Australia.

On first glance you'd think this has to be all EFX'd out.  But it is real. As the boys confess, they didn't have any money for CGI in their DIY effort.  However, they probably did have some time  and they were unclear when asked how many takes these shots took.  Ah....the magic of editing.   But still a fun little clip.  And a cute group of guys too.